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I was a Leeds "fan" when I first developed an interest in football, not for any particular reason other than they won the league the year I started geting interested :o Started going to City games 10 years ago, when Dave Barry had just taken over. My mother was teaching one of the players (Gareth Cronin) and she decided to take me and my brother to a game. Went along a few times that season before getting completely hooked on it the following season.
What about a League of Wales team? You'd be as welcome as the Flowers In May Boyo!Quote:
Originally Posted by Soper
I was a Leeds "fan" when I first developed an interest in football, not for any particular reason other than they won the Fairs Cup the year I started geting interested . And it was through them ironically enough that I got interested in UCD. In March 1981 while I was a student in Belfield there was a friendly match to mark the official opening of the dressing room block at Belfield Park.
The opponents were the NASL team Vancouver Whitecaps from Western Canada, among their playing staff at the time were David Harvey, Ray Hankin and Terry Yorath all of whom had played for Leeds in the 1970's ( when they were still useful). UCD held them to a 1-1 draw and that was it . I started going semi-regularly the following season. And though I missed a couple of seasons en route been regular attender at Belfield Park almost ever since.
I moved to Drumcondra in 1990, I think I first went to Tolka about two years later, 1992, I was 11, went down with friends and got in for free at half time! Just kept going, some seasons more regular then others, but thats my story!
hahaha, I would, it's just transport/logistics are a problem with Welsh teams!I don't know, I might end up going back to see 'Diff again, I'll see.Quote:
Originally Posted by CollegeTillIDie
I would be from a GAA family. My father would be very anti-soccer etc. He got that from his father. His brother played hurling for Cork and he tells the story of a guy from Glasheen Celtic coming to the door asking if he wanted to join the local soccer team. My grandad chased him down the street. :D
I got interested initially when I went along with a buddy. We gradually got more and more obsessed with it. Going to the Shed these days is a far cry from some of the games Ive been at when there would have been literally 70 people in there. These are good times to be a Cork city fan. :)
Athlone Town in their LOI B Division days. I think my first match was in either 66 or 67. They played Shamrock Rovers that day. Rovers had an up and coming player called Jackie Clarke, blonde fellow, playing that day. Last I heard of him he was in Toronto or some Canadian city. The crowd that day was around 1200 to 1500.
Next game was an Intermediate Cup semi-final against Tramore Athletic in Mels.
Became a lovely habit after that. :)
C'mon the Town.
My first Derry game was on 29th December 1985.
That was our first season back in football, and literally everyone in the town went along to games. Earlier that season my dad asked me did I want to go along to our very first game in September against Home Farm and to my eternal shame I basically told him to catch himself on !
Anyways - my first game was about as unenjoyable an experience as you could imagine. It was freezing cold - the pitch had only been cleared of snow by volunteers half an hour before kick-off. We were using a couple of new players - one of whom had apparently never seen snow before in his life (not sure if that was an urban myth though). We lost the game 1:0 to a very poor EMFA team, but the atmosphere was absolutely awesome, so I was hooked.
Those were the days when we'd have 10,000+ at home games, and would take up to 4,000 fans to places like Monaghan and Longford (in the days when Longford were in Abbeycarton and had zero support). There's an entire generation of Derry men about my age who have literally all been to at least one Derry game. My brother hates football and he came to the '86 Shield final. I'd a friend at the time who hated football, but he got sucked into the whole Derry City thing for a few years as well.
The phoenix will arise again..... :D
Remember it well.Quote:
Originally Posted by dcfcsteve
I was taken to my first Derry games in the 85/86 season by an uncle (Who never goes now). First game was against Brian CLoughs Nottingham Forrest, think i went to a Shamrock Rovers game too (a friendly). Went on my own actually for a few years after that. Travelled with the now extinct Creggan Community SC. Met up with the core of BPSC around 98/99 and we formed club soon after that. The madness began.
Started following Harps about '93 when a neighbour of mine (Maurice Toland) began featuring regularly for the team. Went along to the odd home game and my first away game was the play-off in Athlone and that was me hooked. The way the Harps fans got behind the team that night was simply breathtaking and led to me becoming a fanatic. After that night I never wanted to miss a match!
For a few years our atmposphere declined dramatically until the "Independientes" came on the seen and has gradually grown into the vocal band of us who travel everywhere, in good times or in bad supporting the religion that is Finn Harps F.C.
I hadn't been a regular attender at EL matches for over 10 years until I found this site last year and had my interest revived by the enthusiasm of the people on here. Been to quite a few Rovers matches since then.
My brother took me to see Rovers when I was 15 against Fram Rekjavik in the European Cup in 1982. Got hooked straight away and was regular supporter from then on. Have a soft spot for Bray also since one of my best mates at college starting playing for them in around 1987/1988 and saw them alot until the mid nineties. Worked abroad for a few years and kind of lost interest when I got back to Ireland until last year.
Think i just got hooked to live football but not exactly sure how started..
Not sure why started going to the cross first but maybe City playing Derry in Cup Final in 1989 help plus had friend at school who used to go. Then City lead the league all thought 1990-91 & lost on last day to Dundalk.
Throughout the early 90's would go to many but not all games & only rare big away games. When had my own transport easier to go for rest of decade but probably moving to Dublin means i ironically go to more games.
Is there anyone here who supported an eL side BEFORE an english sides?
btw befoe i went to City games i don't think I have any memory of the LOI even existing which probably shows the level of media coverage even pre Premiership.
First game was against Newcatle West in the FAI Cup in Abbeycartron - 88 or 89. Played Derry in the semi in St Mels that year anyway.
Always tended to be over in the summer, so dropped off the radar. When I moved back, fell in with a group of fellow alcoholics who went to matches and that's how I started being a supporter. Did a few mad seasons, but now finding it hard to go due to lack of time more than anything - the joys of getting married and building a house. Painting/tiling/landscaping etc all have to take priority. And I used to critise others for being part timers, and never brought that excuse off them - you free and single youngsters should enjoy it while you can :eek: :o :D
Meant to add, it's just natural to me to support a "local" team and go to matches. There maybe a distance between my two teams now, but the basis of the support was where I'm from, not where I'm at ;)
I got into Man U when I was around 12 when I got a few of their magazines (Keano was prob on the cover) which were pretty damn slick to say the least. Than got me fairly interested in footie (this was around the time of USA 94). I hadent heard of any eL team then though! My dad had told me about Hibs & Celtic and some of the famous old players like Bacuzzi & Wiggy but I knew that those clubs were in the past.Quote:
Originally Posted by pete
A few of my friends started going along to City games during Xmas of 1997, more for the crack than the football, and I went along to one of them. My first game was City v Shels on Dec 27, 1997. The shed was PACKED! I have never seen it so packed since. It was really, really (really) rocking, for the whole 90 minutes. The game finished 4-4 with both teams looking like they could win it. It was so dramitic and exciting and Ive been hooked since (I think most people fortunate to be at it will agree it was one of the best games ever in LoI). The only exposure I had to the League of Ireland before that was the odd highlights on Sunday Sports or whatever it was called around 10:30 on a Sunday night on RTE and I knew that St Pats were the superstars of the day. City rarely got a mention though, so I knew more about Pats than City for a long time!
Was brought up to first drogs match when I was about r 6 (i think) by my parents (i think they were persuaded to bring us up by a bloke my dad worked with). It bacame a bit of a family day out every sunday afternoon as a kid. Tbh we used be playing football on the street beforehand and it used be a bit of a pain been dragged up to watch the drogs as the 6 hour matches used never be finshed but when i got up there i used love it!!
Hooked ever since - my folks were never big away trippers and we used go to maybe the odd away match in dublin, craptown and monaghan.
these days (and in recent years) I head up wit a couple of mates who ive managed to get hooked as well as lads i just got to know on the terraces and manage to get to all the away matches as a result of this :) !
Started going to Bray games as a wee 8 year old(1994), when my uncle tarz signed a contract with them. As i relied on me mam to bring form the age of 8-12/13 i didn't really go to many away games as i was to young, but was at every home game from then. When i was old enough i satrted to go to away games alone and i think i've missed only 10-12 in the last 6 years due to work or holidays. Been a season ticket holder for 7 years now. I've expierienced drama of the highest order.... My nails have been bitten off so many times over the years. So many promotions, relegations, cup wins, semi final defeats, EUROPE, 4th place and so on... My greatest memory was the cup final win over Harps, 3 epic games that were there mostly for Harps to win. Bray had the lead for a total of 23 mins of the whole 300 mins of the final. Imagine...I was real proud of my uncle when he was selected to represent the EL against Ireland and Croatia and when he toured the USA aswell with them, the only first division player at the time! And the support lives on!
I always kept an eye on how my local club were doing. I never went to games because I never knew about ticket availability/prices. Didn't know wheteher you had to know someone or if there was a ticket booth, also didn't want to turn up at wrong end...
Then after Bohs escaped relegation I was pleased to see them creeping up the table and so I enquired.. got some tickets.. and have been hooked since April 00.
I think the crowd was the reason I stayed.. the reaction when we scored was brilll and I wanted to be a part of it. :)
That's good squishee
My Dad is an Athlone Town fan and indeed used to write a column in the local paper back in the days. My first game was as a toddler with my parents.
Despite the early initiation to the league of ireland experience, I was approx age 7 before I first went to see Galway Rovers. My father had promised to bring me to see Connacht play in the rugby, but when we got to the Sportsground the game had been switched. So to avoid me being all disappointed, he brought me to Terryland where Galway Rovers were playing Sligo Rovers.
After that, I used to keep a scrapbook of all the match reports and photos (god knows where that has gone now though) while generally only being brought to games if we were playing home or away to Athlone (obvious reasons). When I was about 10 or 11 I was allowed to go on my own and later dragged my brothers.
Last few seasons I've only managed a game or two, but when living back home I went as often as I could - including the terrible 13(?) defeats in row back in 1995/6 before missing the game where got back on the winning trail in Sligo.
That was probably the most depressing season other than this one.
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Lally must go.
i was a media brainwashed man united fan for years. i went to a few City games with friends around 1995/6, enjoyed it. i think my friends just went for the atmosphere but i enjoyed the live soccer, and players like patsy freyne and john caulfield were always entertaining.
eventually i went to more and more city games, and started to care less and less about united. supporting city also had made me hate celtic by this stage so when eventually i jacked in united, sold my myriad of jersies and memorabilia & pledged allegience to the one true faith, it was no surprise.
when it happened was a surprise for others though: about a week after they won the CL :D i was just like: they won the biggest prize in the world and i didnt feel that delighted. whats the point?
The first few games I was at in Kilcohan blur into each other. I remember going with my Dad and his brother and my cousins. I remember Alan Reynolds being on the bench and coming on as a sub - possibly getting sent off then.
My Dad has always been a big soccer man and when I was growing up there were 13 jerseys hanging on the washing line every monday. Really got into the blues when they moved to the RSC and when they started playing the Friday night games.
I've had a season ticket ever since then and I used coordinate my trips home from college with home games. Even though I'm living abroad at the moment I still get a season ticket every year. I plan on moving back to Ireland in time for next season though so I'll be back in the RSC from then on.
I also used to go to a few matches in UCD when I was a student there.